Guinea

Brief history
Guinea became independent from France in 1958. The fledgling country's first president was ousted by the military in 1984 and they had a heavy influence on the government until very recently. The first elections were held in 1993, but general Conte who had ruled the military government since 1984, was elected for president. He continued to be re-elected and after his dead in 2008, another military-led government emerged.

After this coup, the unrest in Guinea was mounting. After the coup-leader, captain Camara, was wounded late 2009 during an attempt to assassinate him, he fled the country. The military subsequently organized elections in 2010 and the first civilian government headed by president Conde took the helm.

The air force of Guinea has always been quite small. It used to operate a mix of Russian transport and fighter aircraft because of the international pressure. Nowadays, the minute air force relies on some French helicopters, surviving Soviet transports and recently acquired Mi-25 gunship helicopters.